Remember When You Hit the Brakes Too Soon
by BroadwayBaggins
Summary: A magical blizzard, a car accident, and the shock of a lifetime for Robin and Regina.
1. Chapter 1

_Extremely cliche OQ drabble based on Out of the Woods by Taylor Swift. _

_"Remember when you hit the brakes too soon_

_Twenty stitches in a hospital room_

_When you started cryin' baby, I did too_

_But when the sun came out I was lookin' at you"_

It had all happened so quickly.

Outrunning the Snow Queen's storm, admittedly, had not been one of Regina Mills' better ideas. She should have known better, should have known it wouldn't work. But she had heard them crying out, Robin and Roland trapped in a vortex of snow and ice, and she had been unable to stop herself from cutting a path towards them with her magic, guiding them to her car, revving the engine and trying like hell to outrun the blizzard. She hadn't been thinking clearly, but the two of them were freezing and she knew the one place that they would be safest was at her house. The Snow Bitch was after Emma, anyway—she wanted nothing to do with Regina, from the looks of it, and Marian had just been collateral damage, a way to blame Elsa while keeping Ingrid out of the limelight for just a little while longer while she put her insane plan into motion. She didn't want to hurt Robin, or Roland, or Regina, so long as they stayed out of her way. Surely they would be safer with her than they would be anywhere else.

Her tires skidded on the icy roads, her hands gripping the steering wheel so hard her knuckles were no doubt white beneath her red leather gloves. Robin and Roland were huddled in the back and the heater was on full-blast, and Regina was trying to reassure them, to let them know that she would keep them safe, because she might not know how to stop loving Robin but she sure as hell knew how to protect the people she cared about.

It was when she took her eyes off the road for a split second to look back at them that she didn't see the flash of yellow through the intersection. Then the world was spinning, and Roland was screaming, and Robin was strangely silent…

_I wanted to keep you safe._

* * *

><p>Hook had been in the Bug with Emma when Regina had collided with them. The two of them were fine—Emma had whiplash, judging from the stiffness in her posture as she hurried out of the car over to them, and Hook was slightly dazed but none the worse for wear. Roland had escaped with nothing more than a bump on the head—Robin must have thrown his body over the small boy's to keep him from any danger. Regina herself hardly noticed the deep gash that cut across her cheekbone, the aftermath of the impact that had shattered the window on the driver's side. Dimly she must have registered the pain, but her brain was refusing to accept it. She was too busy staring straight ahead at the huddled form lying in the snow a few feet away from the car, deathly still in a sea of broken glass, deep crimson staining the immaculate blanket of powdery snow beneath him.<p>

_Robin._

_"_Regina? What the hell happened? I ordered all the roads to be closed—the storm's too dangerous. You came out of nowhere— what are you—" Emma's gaze landed on Robin's body and she swore under her breath. "Robin? Robin!"

"Daddy!" Roland cried out, tears streaming down cheeks pink with cold. Somehow, Regina managed to hold him back from his father as Hook ran over and knelt on the snow beside Robin's limp figure, fingers feeling his neck for a pulse. "Daddy!"

Hook gave a sigh of relief "He's alive. It's faint but it's there. He's losing a lot of blood…"

"Daddy, get up! Daddy! Daddy daddy daddy!"

"We've got to get him to the hospital. Killian, be careful with him," Emma ordered gently. "If he hit his head…"

"Seat belt," Regina croaked, hardly registering Emma's voice.. "He wasn't wearing…he must not have…he didn't know…"

"I'll call 911."

_I was supposed to keep you safe._

It was only when she heard Emma start dialing the hospital that she realized the snow had stopped falling.

* * *

><p><em>"<em>He's awake."

It took Regina several times to register Whale's words. She's still in a daze, holding a sleepy Roland on her lap as if he was the only thing tethering her to earth right now. Her cheek stung, and when she reached up to brush the hair out of her eyes she realized that someone must have stitched it up, although she had only a dim memory of it. All she could think about was Robin, thrown from the car because he was protecting his little boy from harm, put in harm's way in the first place because Regina had been trying to protect them,

"He has a few broken ribs, some lacerations, and he's still pretty groggy, but considering the man was thrown from a moving vehicle, I'd say he's doing all right. It could have been a lot worse."

"Th-thank you," Regina said softly. Roland stirred in her arms; she shifted him so that she was supporting his weight completely in her arms as she stood up, his head resting gently on her shoulder. "Can we—can Roland see him?"

Whale seemed to consider this. "He's still fairly out of it," he told Regina gently. "And there's a few tubes and wires and things that might be scary for him. But he was asking to see his son."

Relief flooded through Regina. "He's speaking?"

"Insisting, rather. I think letting Roland see his father wouldn't hurt."

"Daddy?" Roland whispered from the crook of Regina's neck. She glanced down to see wide brown eyes blinking up at her, tired still but so much more alert than they had been before.

"Yes, Roland. Let's go and see your Daddy."

* * *

><p>At first, seeing him in the bed didn't feel real. She had never seen Robin Hood looking so vulnerable before, lying there in a hospital gown. Bandages crisscrossed his arms, and his face was bruised and slightly swollen. Regina's heart ached at the sight of him, road rash peppering his skin where it is not bandaged, the little heartrate monitor on his index finger, an IV in his wrist. This wasn't her Robin—but it was. He was in this state because he was protecting his son. This was her Robin in every sense of the word.<p>

Except he wasn't her Robin, he was Marian's. And she wasn't even there to see him.

"Daddy!" Roland cried out, scrambling in Regina's arms to be set down. She complied and watched him race over to his daddy's side, arms outstretched, and the sight made her ache even more. He tried to scramble up onto the bed, but Regina was quick to stop him, not wanting him to accidentally yank a wire from the wall or Robin's IV out by accident.

"Careful, Roland. You have to be gentle with your daddy for a while now, until he gets better, okay?"

"How's my brave Merry Man?" Robin asked him with a smile. His voice sounded tired, slightly slurred.

"I'm okay. I hit my head but the doctor says I'm okay. Just a bump, see?" He tilted his head back for his father to examine, which he did diligently.

Robin chuckled. "A fine goose egg. You can think of it as your first battle wound. I'm very proud of you for being so brave."

"Regina stayed with me so I wouldn't get scared. And Emma got a nurse to give me some juice. Are you gonna be okay, Daddy?"

Robin grinned at his son, ruffling his hair and placing a kiss atop his dark curls. "When have I ever not been?"

"That's what Regina said too."

"Regina is a very wise woman," Robin said solemnly. Regina, lingering in the doorway like some kind of unwelcome intruder, smiled softly. "And just who is Regina? One of the nurses you said took care of you?"

Regina's heart stopped.

"W-what?" she asked, taking a staggering step forward into the room. Her face was ashen, and Robin's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Or…your cheek. You're injured. Forgive me, were you involved in the…car accident as well? I'm terribly sorry, my memories of that are still a bit foggy. Either way… I don't believe we've been introduced. Robin of Locksley, at your service."


	2. Chapter 2

_I am absolutely overwhelmed by the positive response to this story so far! Here is the next chapter, which I hope lives up to your expectations for a continuation for the story! Enjoy!_

* * *

><p>This had to be a dream. It had to be. And yet Regina knew better than that, had always known better. The reason her life felt like it was collapsing all around her was because it was. She had thought that nothing could possibly hurt worse than everything she had dealt with in the past: Daniel's death, Snow White's betrayal, the empty ache in her heart when she'd had to kill her father to cast the curse, the realization that Emma had stupidly brought Marian back into Storybrooke with her. But at the moment, none of them seemed to compare to this, the new ache she felt spreading through her heart in places she had thought stopped existing long ago.<p>

She had told him to forget her. And, through no fault of his own, he had done just that.

Because of her.

She realized she was still standing there, gaping at him, as Robin looked expectantly at her. His eyes were slightly vacant, but not just from pain—he was looking right through her, just as Henry had when Emma had first returned with him to Storybrooke to defeat Zelena, back before he'd been able to remember her again. Just like Henry, Robin didn't have a clue who she was.

_Only this is different. This isn't because of magic .There's no kiss or spell or potion that can make this better._

"I…" she stammered, at a loss for words, staring at him with equal parts horror and heartbreak in her shocked eyes.

Roland scrunched up his nose, his eyebrows knit together in confusion. "Daddy, it's Regina," he said slowly, as if that would somehow jog his father's faulty memory. "You know who Gina is."

Robin shook his head, confusion clouding his own features. "No, my boy, I'm afraid I don't."

"Yes you do! It's Regina! She makes me laugh and she buys me ice cream and she saved me from the flying monkeys!"

"Flying what?"

"Roland, you need to settle down," Regina said quickly. Her voice shook, but she knew she had to remain calm if only for Roland's sake. The last thing she needed was for Roland to be upset now, not when she was so close to falling apart herself. Not when she wasn't sure if seeing his son in such distress would only make Robin worse. Were there other injuries, things that Whale had missed in his initial examination? Was he going to forget more than just her? "This is a hospital, okay? There are people here, people who are hurt like your daddy and who need to get better, so you need to let them rest. You can't shout."

"But he has to know you! He has to! He just has to!"

_But he doesn't._

Regina heard a noise behind her, and she turned, hoping to see Dr. Whale striding in (perhaps the first time in her life that she hoped that). But instead, it was Emma she saw in the doorway, still holding her neck stiffly from the accident. Regina turned away. "Not you," she hissed. "I need Whale!"

"What's the matter?"

"Haven't you done enough?" Regina said witheringly. Even as she said it, there was a part of her that knew she was wrong in doing so. For once, Emma wasn't to blame, at least not entirely. Yes, it had been her car that Regina had hit, but she hadn't even been driving it at the time. She had simply been doing her job as sheriff, trying to keep the roads clear and the people safe. It was Regina who had been speeding, trying like hell to outrun the Snow Queen's storm, which had vanished as quickly as it had begun. It was Regina who hadn't been watching the road, who hadn't bothered to explain to Robin what a seat belt was and how it worked. It was her fault that he had been thrown from the car. The accident, everything that followed…that was on Regina, not Emma. "Where the hell is Whale?!"

Regina hated admitting that she needed anyone, that damn doctor most of all. But right now, with her feeling powerless to fix something that hadn't been caused by magic, she realized she needed Whale to do what she could not: bring back Robin's memories of her.

When she'd told him to forget her, she had never expected that he would actually do it.

_Be careful what you wish for._

* * *

><p>It took a while, but through careful questioning, they determined that Robin had no memory of the last year.<p>

It was Zelena's curse all over again, only worse. The accident had stolen his memories of Storybrooke too—Regina was surprised that he wasn't more shocked at the fact that he'd woken up in a strange new world, to him anyway, with no memory of how he got there. As carefully as they could, they explained about the curse, about Zelena, about everything not having to do with Regina or Marian. Regina had glared daggers at him, but Whale's paltry explanation, that they didn't want to overwhelm Robin with emotions when he was still in such a stressful condition, made enough sense for her not to question it. Those words could come later, unless by some miracle he remembered everything on his own. According to Whale, it was possible.

"I just don't understand," Regina said, her tone as helpless as she would allow it to get around these people. "How did this happen?"

"It's too soon to tell right now. There's a lot about the brain we don't know about," Whale said, looking embarrassed and more than a little afraid. No doubt he thought Regina would incinerate him if he gave her an answer she didn't like. In all honesty, that was the furthest thing from her mind. All she wanted right now, all she cared about was making sure that Robin was going to be all right. "Amnesia like this…"

"Amnesia," Robin repeated, still sounding confused. Of course. Of course it was amnesia. Because that was what Regina Mills' life had come to.

"It's still not entirely understood, especially after a traumatic injury like this. I can run some tests, do some scans, see if there's any bleeding going on in his brain that could be causing the memory loss—"

Regina was sure she was going to faint.

"But the fact of the matter is, the brain is a tricky thing. There's still so much we don't understand. His memory could come back in a few hours. It could take longer. Maybe if I had access to better facilities, a better hospital—"

"Have you forgotten about the gigantic ice wall surrounding the town?" Regina snapped.

Whale sighed. "My point is, it could take some time to figure out exactly what it is we're dealing with. You're going to have to be patient."

"Do your job, and maybe I won't have to be."

"Daddy?" Roland asked in a small voice. Regina and the others turned to him—it seemed they had all but forgotten that he was even there. "You have to remember. You have to."

Robin held his boy close, stroking his dark curly head absentmindedly. "I'll do my best, Roland."

Whale started talking then, calling in nurses, giving orders for MRIs and EKGs and things Regina hadn't even known this provincial hospital was capable of. She hardly heard him. Roland was tearfully led from the room by Emma, no doubt to be fussed and coddled over by nurses who didn't even know him. She wondered if she could call Henry and get him over here somehow, get him to keep Roland company. She would do it herself, but she felt too numb…almost too numb to even breathe. Later, she would find him and give him the comfort he so desperately needed, the comfort that neither his father or mother could provide right now. But at this very minute, Regina needed to process this on her own.

_He doesn't even know who I am._

The last thing she saw before she turned, puppetlike, to leave the room were Robin's eyes, confused, bewildered, maybe even scared, looking to her and begging for answers she was powerless to give.

Numbly, she made her way out of the room, back into the corridor and into the nearest chair, sinking into it like she could no longer hold herself up anymore. Her elbows rested on her bent knees, and she pressed the palm of one hand into her forehead, squeezing her eyes shut tight, wishing she could shut out the world. How had this happened? How was it that Robin not remembering her was ten times more painful than losing him like she had already?

She felt someone slide into the chair next to her, but she did not stir. She didn't have to look to know who it was. "Go away, Miss Swan."

"I just wanted to see how you're holding up."

"You couldn't tell just by looking at me?"

Emma sighed. "Look, Regina, I know that there's…nothing that I can say…"

"Then don't." With a sigh of her own, Regina leaned back in her chair, still refusing to look at Emma. She knew what she would see if she did—a face that brought to mind memories of Snow White as a young girl, innocent and eager to please and also just wanting to help, never stopping to think of what consequences might arise from that help. Emma was so much like her mother it was almost painful sometimes. Regina wondered if she knew that. "For once, just please don't try to help."

"Regina…"

"Emma. Please," Regina whispered, her voice ragged. "For once, I know this wasn't your fault. But believe me when I say that I _cannot_ be around you right now. So please, for right now, just leave me _alone."_

Regina remained staring at the wall, feeling Emma's eyes on her. Finally, she seemed to give in, getting to her feet. "I'm going to go check on Roland," she said softly as her footsteps retreated down the hall.

"Take your time."

From outside the hospital, a figure clad entirely in white moved, concealed in the shadows. This had certainly taken an interesting turn—a traumatic accident, a true love forgotten. Even she couldn't have planned this so perfectly. She would have to thank Emma for this later, even if she didn't yet know what it was she had done. Regina would most certainly blame Emma for this. She would turn on her, as she always did when she felt hurt or threatened. Regina Mills was like a caged animal, battered and beaten, always trying to turn on those closest to her even when they were only trying to help. Regina would lash out at Emma, as she had been doing this entire time. Emma would be isolated even further from those she cared about…and then, Ingrid would swoop in and give her the family she had always wanted, the kind of family who would truly deserve her.

But first, she was going to have a little fun of her own.

Ingrid waved her hand. It was time for a little thaw to come to Storybrooke.


End file.
